A Tennessee teacher charged with kidnapping his 15-year-old student and sparking a nationwide 39-day manhunt has reportedly changed his mind and will plead guilty.
Tad Cummins, 51, initially pleaded not guilty last year to charges of transporting Elizabeth Thomas across state lines for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual conduct and obstruction of justice.
But his attorney filed a motion with authorities to change the plea, WTVF-TV reported on Thursday.
Cummins, who is married, and Thomas became nationwide news last year when they fled Columbia, Tennessee, and went on the run together after developing an inappropriate relationship at the school where he taught and she was a student.
The pair were found in California more than four weeks after they vanished.
Tad Cummins, 51, initially pleaded not guilty last year to charges of transporting Elizabeth Thomas, who was 15 years old at the time, across state lines for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual conduct and obstruction of justice
Cummins, who sparked a nationwide 39-day manhunt, has reportedly changed his mind and will plead guilty
During the course of the trial last year, it was learned that Cummins spent $1,500 on a two-seat kayak after he went missing with Thomas from Tennessee on March 13.
FBI Agent Utley Noble testified in a federal court in Nashville that Cummins and the student tried to use the kayak to get from San Diego to Mexico.
They allegedly adopted the aliases of a married couple – John and Joanne Castro – so they would be able to blend in once they crossed over the border from the US to Mexico.
Noble also said that Cummins purchased an iPad while on the run as he wanted to keep an eye on what was being reported in the media about them.
Cummins, who is married, and Thomas became nationwide news last year when they fled Columbia, Tennessee, and went on the run together after developing an inappropriate relationship at the school where he taught and she was a student
Cummins had allegedly thrown their phones into a river in Alabama, disabled the car’s GPS device and replaced the license plates so they wouldn’t be detected when they were on the run from Tennessee to California.
The teacher was arrested and the girl was found safe in a remote area of Northern California on April 20 of last year – 38 days after they disappeared – after police received a tip.
Authorities say Cummins told officers after his arrest that he thought he had been found out when he ran into a law enforcement officer while he was testing out the kayak he had bought.
But he said the officer only warned him and Thomas that the water was rough and gave them tips on the boat and then left.
From then on he slept with his gun beside him, agent Noble said.
Cummins, who is a father and grandfather, allegedly told officers he had sex with the girl most nights during the 38 days he was on the run with her.
The sexual relationship with the girl allegedly began the first night after they disappeared March 13.
Authorities admitted in court that there was no evidence that the girl was held against her will at any time on the trip from Columbia, Tennessee, to California.
Cummins left a note for his wife Jill Cummins the morning he disappeared saying he had gone to Virginia Beach to clear his head.
Cummins left a note for his wife Jill Cummins the morning he disappeared saying he had gone to Virginia Beach to clear his head
‘I am so sorry!’ he wrote. ‘I just need to clear my mind of all this cr*p. I am not running away. I’ll be back. Don’t call police they’ll think I ran ’cause I’m guilty and I’m not!’
‘I am so sorry!’ he wrote.
‘I just need to clear my mind of all this cr*p. I am not running away. I’ll be back. Don’t call police they’ll think I ran ’cause I’m guilty and I’m not!’
A federal judge told Cummins he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and could receive a life sentence.
Cummins is facing a federal charge of crossing state lines to have sex with a minor.
He also faces state charges of aggravated kidnapping and sexual contact with a minor.
After Cummins’ arrest, Thomas spent time in rehab and refused to return home to her family – claiming she’s ‘in love’ with her schoolteacher abductor who kidnapped her for 39 days.
DailyMail.com previously revealed that the 15-year-old insists she is a ‘fully grown woman’ who should be entitled to date the 50-year-old.
Thomas has even told friends she had the ‘time of her life’ during their five weeks on the run.
The teacher was arrested and the girl was found safe in a remote area of Northern California on April 20 of last year – 38 days after they disappeared – after police received a tip. The Black Bear Ranch near Cecilville, California where they stayed is seen in the above photo
She went willingly with Cummins and alluded to their relationship in social media posts in the weeks beforehand.
Because she was just 15 at the time, however, he was charged with kidnapping.
The girl’s father filed a lawsuit against Cummins and the school where they met, claiming they could have prevented them from going on the run.
Police had been told about their relationship before they fled the town and despite ongoing investigations into the alleged misconduct, Cummins was allowed to remain on campus as a teacher afterwards for several days if not weeks.
Authorities and school staff were first alerted to it by other students who saw the pair kissing in his classroom.
It is not known how much money the girl’s family hope to be awarded as a result of the suit.
Cummins previously claimed that he was forced into admitting that the pair had sex while on the run by authorities who told him he would be charged with rape otherwise.